piggies got a lump

Question
Hi scruff is 6months old & the dominemt one of the two (his brother smudge)has been lifeless for 2 days not seen him eating & last night i found a very large lump on his back end. took him to vets today they say its a testicular absis & has to be removed surgically & then has to be castrated. as he is week i have to feed him up for two days & i have antibiotics & another medicine to give him through syringes have to go back in two days ((( is it safe for him to go under the knife? they said two days i think to see if he survives got him home gave him the medicine & food & then he ate some cucumber  & brocoli bless him  if he is castrated would it be best to get his brother done aswell? as they said the dominace roles may change over once scruff is castrated?  

Answer
Hello Judy,

Abscesses can be very dangerous because they are pockets of infection and can poison the rest of his body. While being weak and ill is not a good thing for going into surgery, he's not likely to get well until the abscess is gone, so it's best to do it as soon as you can. Unlike some other animals, nuetering does not change them in anyway other than they are no longer able to produce young when they mate(and in your piggy's case, will no longer have an abscess). Dominance won't be affected by the surgery however, it can be affected by them being separated for a period of time. There is no reason to have the other piggy fixed, it won't change anything. When piggies are fixed they retain everything except reproductive organs, they still have a drive to be dominant and they will even still mate if they are around a female in season. It's best to leave your other piggy intact unless you plan to keep him with a female. Surgeries can be risky for piggies and shouldn't be done unless it needs to be. I hope your little boy will pull through. Good luck.

-kkat
www.geocities.com/abyssinianguineapigs